BINGHAMTON, NY - Broome County Executive Barbara J. Fiala hosted a press conference Wednesday morning to announce details of this year's Chris Thater Memorial. The County Executive was joined by Binghamton Mayor Matt Ryan, District Attorney Gerry Mollen, STOP DWI Coordinator Jim May, and Grace Tabeek, organizer of the 5k race. The event is scheduled to kick off Saturday morning from Recreation Park in Binghamton. The complete schedule can be accessed at www.bcstopdwi.com.

“The Chris Thater Memorial is one of our most successful community events here in Broome County,” said Executive Fiala. “I want to thank Jim May STOP DWI Coordinator, for the work he does year round to bring this major event to our community. This is an event for the whole family to enjoy and I thank the many sponsors for their contributions to this world class sporting event.”

Chris Thater was an avid cyclist who was killed by a drunk driver. Jim May has dedicated this sporting event in Chris' memory and in the process he has created a tremendously effective tool for spreading the anti drunk driving message. The Chris Thater is in its 24th year and will celebrate its silver anniversary next year. The event attracts more than 1,500 athletes from around the world and more than 12,000 spectators.

“I'm proud the Chris Thater Memorial has become a highly respected stop for both runners and cyclists and I'm proud to be take part in building this community attraction,” said Jim May, STOP-DWI Coordinator. “As this event has grown, we've been able to reach out to educate everyone, especially our young people, about the dangers of drinking and driving.”

The fun filled weekend will begin with a noon concert on Friday, August 24th featuring the McKrells on the Broome County Courthouse steps in Downtown Binghamton. The concert is sponsored by Southern Tier Celebrates and is free and open to the public. Southern Tier Celebrates is also sponsoring a concert on Saturday evening from 6:30 - 8:30pm featuring the hit band, Red Molly.

The action of the Chris Thater Memorial begins on Saturday morning at 10am with bicycle races. A number of different cycling and running divisions will race during the day Saturday and all day Sunday. The event will culminate on Sunday with the final cycling race scheduled to start at noon. All races begin at Recreation Park in Binghamton. This year, there will also be a CYO Summer Shootout 3-3 tourney on Sunday from 11am-4pm. In addition, a number of family fun activities will be taking place at the park on Saturday and Sunday as part of the Chris Thater Memorial Expo, including a climbing wall and mobile skate park.

STOP-DWI stands for "Special Traffic Options Program for Driving While Intoxicated". The STOP-DWI Program was enacted by the State Legislature in 1981 for the purposes of empowering county governments to coordinate local efforts to reduce alcohol and other drug-related traffic crashes within the context of a comprehensive and financially self-sustaining alcohol and highway safety program.